Circuit-controller.



R. W. COFFEE.

GIRGUITI CONTROLLER. APPLICATION FILED MAY 15, 1906. RENEWED JAN. 3, 1908.

Patented Feb. 16, 1909.

IIVVEIVTOR WITNESSES lfobe'rl-wf Ucffeq T ya . ATTORNEYS {Ma .A;

i residing athichmond; n the county of Hen- 1'01" succes ta'cts ontkol' and into engagement with the f'u'snally been ,ponst-ructed ol' tact arnYQad aptcd -in then-r0 of a one. tion oi'the rotary ,*ie.dahle il' typefiol contact maker, .*adaptcdutor use at a trance inepplicab c to-engines operating ""nndermo're than ordinary speed of rotation.

"cont-rolling the flow'ot current in the sparking circuits of a gines, and particularly '.0i101iitS of a plurality of explosive engines connected to a common'powe'r transmitting ,plura ity of fixed contacts, and "movabe or of any of the series of contact points from each contact, thereby rmrrn earns r a ranr orrron.

nosn'n'r w. corners, or morn/1on1), visor-ma, assrenoa TO LEWIS M. KEIZER, r 1- or BALTIMORE, MARYLnND.

sincere-coarseness.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Feb. 16,1909. 1906,S r1a1 110.316.9161 Renewed January a, 1968. Serla1No.409,239.

" v Application-filed Maylfi,

1 tive view of my invention. Fig. 2, is atop W. COFFEE, i plan view thereof, the housing or cover being i removed. 1" ig. 3, is a vertical longitudinat section on the line 3-3 of Big. 2. vBig. 4, is a cross section on the line 4-4 of Big... I

To all whom-it may concem: *Be it known that I, ROBERT rice-and State of Virginia, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Circuit-Controllers, of which the following L is a specification: gshaft. 6, is a diagrammatic view herc- My invention relates to certain new "inaiter specifically referred to. useful improvements in circuit controllers i Referring now to the accompanying draw- ;tors'parking devices for use in connection ings in'which like letters and numerals of refwvith explosive engines and the like, and the 'erene'e indicate like parts in all of the figures, 1 invention has particularly for its object to designatesahousing having achamberl and [provide a contact maker and breaker 'for aseat L",ashaft receiving portion1and bearings 1 pas v. ill be clearly understood by reterenceto Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings. housing 1 is provided with a cover 2 that 13 secured over the chamber 1. by screws 2. Secured to the seat 1 and spaced apart at shaft. ;-suitable intervals are flat fingers 3 having a Gcnerically, the invention comprises a i thi'nj 'ortion 3 "to render the free and 3 of l'the ngers 'spring'y. 'lhe fingers 3 are sespring contacts there-tort-ogether'withnieans'i cured to the seat 1 by Screws 4' passin sfully moving the movabie con through apertures 3 and are held from latl eral movement by pins 5 passing through l the lingers 3 and into the apertures 1 in the seat 1 as shown in Fig. 3. Each finger 3 has its free end 3 provided with an adjustable contacting screw 6,pla'tinu1n tipped, as 1 at '6 and held in place by a check nut 6*. Mounted in hearings 1, is a rotatable shaft 7 rotated by any means (not shown) as may desired. The objection to this is that it is not i high rate of speed and Fig. 5, is a perspective view of the rotary plurality of explosive en- /l'or controlling the therewith. lieretoi'ore circuit makers and breakers 'ol the type used in explosive engines have i a rotary conto succ-essive'y engage a series 'oi'Crei'atively fixed contacts arranged i 'e around the axis of rota arm,' said contacts being fixed contacts that cooperate be found desirable. The shaft 7 has notches or flattened portions 7 in its faces one for each finger 3 and arranged one in advance of the other. 'lhe housing 1 is also provided with a plurality of apertures 1 directly beneath the contact screws 6, in which insulating bushings, surrounding the contact pins or bolts 9, are held. The pins 9 have heads 9*, platinum tipped, as at 9 to cooperate with the screws 6 and their platinum tips and they also have a screw threaded portion 9to receive the insulating washer 10 and the nuts 1111 to which the wire terminals of the respective sparking circuits connect. In operation, the parts are connected as diagrammatically shown in Fig. 6 in which the battery is indicatedby 12 and the respective sparking plugs of each engine by 13, the device asillustrated in the drawings being I capable of use in connection with tour engines. Each finger 3 has a nipple 3 to co- 1 Insucli enginesywhcn run under high speed, the relatively fixed contact is often thrown oil and m sses engagement with the rotatable arm. To overcome these objections, I produced the form of mechanism herein described, which eliminates the possibility failure to connect. As more fully described, the rotary shaft makes one revolution for giving much longer time for the spring to return to its normal position while rotating at high speeds. -Ordinarily, one cam or notch operates a pinrality of contacts consequently at l'righ speeds the spark at the plugs arevery irregular, and the charge in the cylinder does not operate with the shaft 7 and its flat portions. ex lode. .In operation, the shaft 7 revolves, and alternthe drawings e-Figure' 1, is a perspecl nately and successively drops the fingers l. U U

' said shaft having a p having a seat, a

ulliO the contacts 9, and then lifts them to their normal non-contacting position. Thus only one finger is in contact with its respective fixed contact at a time and there will be no possibility of more than one sparking plug operating at one time. I I

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings it is thought the complete Inperaticn, construction and numerous advantages "of my invention in ill be readily undarstood by those l skilled in the artto a high it app rtaias.

What I claimiszs r l. A' Contact device: .comprisinga casing plurality of springy contact fingers secured to said seat to normally lie parallel therewith, aplurality of fixed con tacts carried by said casing and insulated from one anotherand adapted to be normally en edby-the springy contacts, a ro-I tatable s projectin throu h said casing, said shaft enga in al of sai spring contacts to normally hold them out of engagement with their res ective fixed contacts,

described. Y I I .4. A contact devicecompriiling a casing,

'adplurality e urality of successively arranged notches for engaging said springy contactsat times to ermit the springy contacts' engaging the 'Exed contacts substantially as shown and'described.

2. A contact device comprising 'a casing, a plurality of springy contact fingers mountec within the casing to lie in substantially the same plane with one another, afplurality of fixed contacts also mounted in the casing to lie in a plane different from that/in which the springy. contact fingers lie, adjustable ontact points carried. by each of said spring contacts and means 006 eratin with t is springy contacts for norma y hol. ing the same out of engagement with the lixed'contacts'and forpermittin the same in successively engage the fixe contacts, substantially as shown anddescribed. A contact device comprising a casing, a, plurality of springy contact fingers mount-- ed within the casing who in substantially th same plane with one another, a lurality .nuptod portions ijnger, each of of fixed contacts'also mounted in t ceasing t lie in a plane diil'erent from that in which [he springy contact fingers lie, adjustable,

contartpoints carried by each of said spring} contacts and means cooperatin springy contacts for normally oldin the same out of engagement with the Ifixe contacts and for permittin the'sameto succes- .Siveiy engage the fix contacts, said last named means comprising 'mtatable shaft of successively arranged having a plurality interrupted portions one for each springy contact finger,

substantially as shown and of springy contact fingers mounts within the casing tolia in substantially ,the same plane with oneandther, a plurality 'of fixed contacts also mounted in the casin to lie in'a plane different from that in whic the springy contact fingers lie, adjustable contact points carried by each of said springycontacts, means coofiieratirg with the springy contacts for norma y hol of engagement with the fixe .contacts and for permitting the same to successively en gage the fixedcont-acts, said last. named means comprising a rotatable shaft, having a plurality of successively arranged interone for each s ringy contact said contact ers hav' mp ice for engaging said shaft, substantially as s own and described. I

5. A contact device comfprising a casing having a-seat, a plurality o resilient fingers secured-to said seat, to normally lie in one plane, aplurality of fixed contact. members mounted in said casing and insulated therefrom andheld in a planeat right angles to that containing the resilient contacts, said casing-having bearings, a rotatable shaft mounted in said bearings and- (projecting through'said casing, said nsulate contacts ada ted to restag'ainst said shaft and be held out of engagement with the fixed contacts therbyg-andsaid shaft having a series of depressions, one for each resilient'c'ontact to permit of. said fixed contacts being en- I gaged by said'resilient contacts at times.

' a ROBERT W. COFFEE. Witnesses 2 FRIED G. DIETERICH, J. ALEX. HILLEARY, Jr.

the same out h All the 

